Multicast is a form of group communication in which information is transmitted to multiple users over a network from a source node in the network. Applications that make use of multicast include, for example, video conferencing, corporate communications, distance learning, and distribution of software, stock quotes, and news.
For Long-Term Evolution (LTE) (sometimes also referred to as 4G) mobile access networks, multicast is a major challenge due to complex control signaling over radio interfaces. Several hosts receive a single data stream and perform complex instructions to differentiate between several multicast groups, where each multicast group includes multiple users each with different user devices. Similar problems also carry over to 5G mobile access networks.
Additionally, managing multicast communications between a multicast source and end users connected to a mobile access network is another challenge. The mobile access network includes a mobility management entity (MME) or access management function (AMF) and gateway nodes to manage and transmit multicast communications including user information associated with user devices. These multicast communications are stored and maintained in a multicast tree in real-time. Therefore, managing multicast communications between mobile access networks, multicast sources, and end users is a complex and resource-intensive process.
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